Unworthy

by Evans, A. K.

  A look I couldn’t read came over Trent. He quickly replaced it and decided, “I’m taking you out tonight.”

  “What?”

  “I’m going to drive back to your place right now so you can shower and get yourself all dressed up. Then, I’m taking you out.”

  “Trent, there’s nothing to celebrate,” I reasoned.

  He raised his brows at me. “Delaney, you took the first steps in healing a ten-year fracture in the relationship with your father this week. You also got the news that your ex isn’t going to fight you for custody of Tate and he’s granting the divorce without much hassle. To top it off, you just had a conversation with him. I don’t know the details of that conversation yet, but from what I saw, it wasn’t unpleasant. Maybe you applied and interviewed for a job that you didn’t get this week, but you can’t win them all. You’ve got plenty to celebrate.”

  I smiled at him and said, “You always know just what to say.”

  “Yeah, I know,” he teased.

  Trent leaned over, curled his hand behind my head, and brought his mouth to mine. With his lips brushing up against mine, he whispered, “You are an amazing woman, Delaney. Sometimes, life is going to hit you with unexpected and unwanted shit. You’ve got to be resilient. Get up and keep going. You want to be an interior designer; I have no doubts you’ll make that happen. And I’ll be standing behind you the whole time doing whatever I can to help you.”

  “Thank you, baby,” I whispered back. “I’m so lucky to have you.”

  Trent kissed me again. After he took some time exploring my mouth, he pulled back and stroked his thumb along my cheek. He did it for so long, I began wondering what he was thinking about. As much as I wanted to know, I figured he’d share whatever it was when he was ready.

  So instead, I teased, “Are you planning to take me out tonight or are a few kisses and gentle touches alongside the road all I’m going to get?”

  His bright eyes came to mine. Any concerns he seemed to have only moments ago were no longer there.

  “This is definitely not all you’re getting tonight,” he promised. “I’ve got a lot planned for you, sweet cheeks.”

  “Then you best get to it.”

  With that, and having successfully turned my mood around, Trent shifted in his seat and focused on the task at hand. He got me to my place so I could shower and get ready for a night out with him.

  A couple hours later, he fulfilled his promise and showed me just how much he had planned especially for me. And when I took the time to think about it, I really couldn’t be upset any longer about the job because my week really hadn’t been that bad after all.

  “Baby.”

  The word left Delaney as a mix of a moan and a breathy whisper.

  We were in my bed, my back to the padded headboard, and Delaney had her gorgeous body on top of me. Her breasts were in my face, her legs were spread, and her pussy was taking my cock.

  Hard.

  Delaney wasn’t a lazy lover. She worked hard to give back just as good as she got, and she made it very clear that she loved what she got.

  Because right now she was leaning forward, her palms planted on the headboard on either side of my face, and she was working her hips over me. My hands and mouth were all over her chest. Cupping both breasts, I buried my face between them and stroked my thumbs across the hardened buds. I swore I could come just from the scent of her alone.

  Delaney whimpered, an indication she was close.

  I lifted my head, keeping my hands on her tits, and looked at her.

  “You like my cock, Delaney?” I asked.

  The sultry look in her eyes gave me the answer, but she still answered, “Yes. Always, baby.”

  “Are you going to take us there, sweet cheeks, or do you want my help?”

  She worked herself harder. “Let me do it,” she pleaded. “I want to make us both feel good.”

  I grinned at her.

  She moved faster.

  Her breathing grew shallow.

  Her whimpers came quicker.

  I felt the onset of her orgasm.

  “Mouth, baby,” I ordered.

  Delaney gave me her mouth just as it tore through her. She moaned into my mouth, the sound and the feel of her body trembling sending me over the edge right along with her.

  As her orgasm left her, Delaney’s body slumped against mine. I couldn’t help but laugh.

  “Wore yourself out,” I teased, running my fingers lightly up and down her back.

  “That’s what I get for being an overachiever,” she shot back.

  I pressed a kiss to her shoulder. “As someone who receives the benefit of your hard work, I’ll have you know it does not go unappreciated.”

  “So noted.”

  I held her a while as our breathing returned to normal. Eventually, I advised, “To show my appreciation for your efforts this morning, how about you let me make you breakfast while you relax in bed a little longer?”

  She turned her head and pressed the opposite cheek to my shoulder so her lips were at my neck now. “Okay, but can you give me just another minute like this first?”

  “I can do that,” I returned gently.

  Three hours later, Delaney and I were putting in some work on the new house. We’d been working hard for the last few hours, and I couldn’t help but watch in awe as Delaney worked to put down the tile in what was going to be our master bathroom. I wasn’t sure why she’d ever doubted what she’d selected for colors and patterns in the house. She had an incredible eye and had chosen things that would be timeless.

  I was standing in the doorway to the bathroom, watching her work on her hands and knees, when she suddenly noticed me standing there.

  “Why are you looking at me like that?” she asked with a smile on her face.

  “Have you ever considered opening your own business?”

  Her brows pulled together as she sat back on her heels. “What?”

  “There’s still a lot of work left to do in this house, but the rooms we’ve been focusing our efforts on are coming together nicely. They look incredible. You’re talented and I know people would be willing to pay for your input.”

  She dropped her head to the side and sighed, “Trent, that would be a dream come true, but I just can’t afford to do something like that right now.”

  “I can cover you,” I returned immediately.

  Delaney jerked back in surprise.

  When she remained silent, I added, “We’re working to finish the most important rooms in this house first, but once we’re done, we can move to work on the cabin. You could do whatever you want with the space to make it the most beneficial for you to use that as your place to work from.”

  Surprise still littered her face when she maintained, “Trent, that’s a lovely offer…a generous one, too. But I have Tate. I need to provide for my baby. As much as I’d love to fulfill my dream one day, it’ll have to wait because his needs come before my dreams.”

  “I can cover him, too.”

  Shaking her head in disbelief, she vehemently refused, “You can’t do that.”

  “Why not?” I asked. “Delaney, I have dreams, too. Dreams I’ve had since I was seventeen that have always included building a life with you and giving you everything you’ve always deserved.”

  Her eyes filled with tears and she dropped her gaze to her lap.

  I walked over and crouched down in front of her. Putting my thumb and forefinger to her chin, I tipped her head up so she’d look at me. Tears fell from her eyes.

  My voice was gentle when I asked, “Why is this making you sad?”

  “I don’t deserve you.”

  We were here again. Delaney had been doing a great job lately of convincing me that she had moved beyond what tore us apart from one another years ago. Now, hearing her words, I wasn’t so sure that was the case.

  “Delaney—”

  “No, Trent,” she cut me off. “I need to say this. From the very first day we met, you’ve be
en my pillar of strength, always picking me up when I was down. No matter if it was the bullies in high school, my mother dying, or the stuff with my father. You were always there for me. And I took advantage of that and hurt you in the worst way possible. By some miracle, I’ve been fortunate enough to get you back in my life. I won’t do it. I won’t take advantage of you again.”

  “Baby…” I trailed off, struggling to come up with the right words to say. I hated that this was still weighing so heavily on her. “What are we doing here?”

  “What?”

  “Today. Here. What are we doing?”

  Delaney was clearly confused, but answered, “We’re renovating your house.”

  I shook my head and corrected her. “No, sweet cheeks. We’re renovating our house. You and I are building a life together. When it comes to stuff like this, there is no more you and me. There’s only an us. We’re in this together now.”

  “This isn’t really our house, Trent. You own it and I haven’t sunk a dime into it.”

  “Are you and Tate moving in here with me once it’s ready?”

  She nodded.

  “Are they your hands that are currently laying the tile in this bathroom?”

  “Yeah.”

  “And will they be your hands that do the countertops and backsplashes in the kitchen?”

  “Of course, but Trent—”

  “No, Delaney,” I cut her off. “You don’t get to make a statement about you not putting any of your money into this house and diminish the work that you’re doing here. If you weren’t doing this, I’d be paying someone to do it.”

  She scoffed, “It’s hardly an even trade.”

  I leaned in, my tone serious, I agreed, “You’re absolutely right, because I’m getting a newly renovated house designed by the love of my life who’s going to move in here with her boy at the end of it. When the time’s right, we’ll make it official and we’ll grow our family. So, you’re right, this isn’t an even trade. I’m getting a hell of a deal.”

  “Trent,” she whispered.

  The tone of my voice hadn’t wavered when I ordered, “Let it go, baby. Let go of the guilt and let me take care of you.”

  She pulled the center of her bottom lip in and bit down. She searched my face a beat before deciding. “Okay, I’ll try.”

  “Don’t try,” I pressed. “Just make it happen. And think of how great it’ll be for your baby. You can spend your days with him, something I know that bothers you. I knew it before, but you confirmed it yesterday when you talked about not getting the job.”

  She took in a few breaths and added, “It’s a big responsibility. You’re agreeing to take me and my son on. What if it doesn’t work out between us long-term?”

  I cocked an eyebrow. “It’s you, Delaney. It’s only ever been you. Why wouldn’t this work out?”

  “I’m just trying to be smart. It’s not just me that I have to worry about,” she reasoned.

  “Do you think I’d ever just throw you and Tate out on the street with nowhere decent to go?”

  She shook her head.

  “Right. Then there are a couple of things you should know,” I started. “I’ve spoken to an attorney already. I was going to put you on the deed for this house, but he recommended waiting until your divorce was finalized. The day you tell me that happens, I’m getting the paperwork going for that. This is going to be just as much your house as it will be mine.”

  Delaney’s lips parted briefly before she pressed them together and swallowed hard.

  “And you’re right. It’s a big responsibility taking on you and Tate. But it’s one I’m honored to take on. To add to that, it’s one I’m more than capable of taking on. Delaney, there’s over a million in the bank. It’s not a hardship or burden to take care of the two most important people in my life. It’s a privilege.”

  Her eyes rounded. “You have over a million in the bank?”

  Smiling, I nodded at her.

  “We’re the most important people in your life?” she asked.

  “Was there a doubt in your mind about that?”

  She shrugged. “I guess I never thought about it…but I like that. I really like knowing that.”

  I moved the extra couple inches toward her and pressed my lips to hers. Delaney lifted her hips from where they were resting on her heels in her crouched position, curled a hand around the back of my head, and slipped her tongue inside my mouth. I dropped to my knees, wrapped my arms around her, and pulled her body tight to mine. Our kiss was long, deep, and unbelievably sweet.

  I tore my mouth from hers, rested my forehead against hers, and asked, “Are you going to let it go?”

  “Yeah, baby. I’m going to let it go.”

  I touched my mouth to hers before I said, “Good. Now, are you going to show me how to do this, so I can help, and we can move in sooner. I’ve got to get us in before Christmas. I want that for us, but I really want it for Tate.”

  “I love you, Trent Michaels,” she proclaimed.

  “I love you, too, sweet cheeks.”

  After another kiss, Delaney and I got back to work. She taught me what she knew about tile and I helped her finish the bathroom. By the end of the day, the only thing that still needed to be completed in the master bedroom, master bathroom, and what would be Tate’s bedroom was the paint. Since we still had the entire day tomorrow to work on the house, we planned to get up early, put in a full day, and completely finish those three rooms.

  Then, assuming all went according to plan, we’d hopefully only need another two weekends to finish up the kitchen and great room. There were still a bunch of rooms in the house that would need to be renovated, but the most important rooms would be finished, allowing us to move in together sooner.

  When it came down to it, I didn’t care how long it would take to finish the rest of the house. My biggest concern was getting the three of us in our new home before the holidays. Everything else would come together eventually, but knowing I had Delaney and Tate with me in our house with our view was all I needed.

  “He looks just like you.”

  I looked at Tate and noted what I had on many occasions before now. My little boy looked just like me.

  And for the first time in his life, Tate was meeting his grandfather. It was Tuesday, and I’d just picked Tate up from daycare. I ran home quickly, took a shower, and fed Tate before we got back in the car to come visit with my father.

  “Yeah, he does,” I agreed. “He’s also a mama’s boy.”

  I was sitting on the couch beside my father, holding Tate, when he asked, “May I hold him?”

  Smiling at him, I said, “Sure.”

  My father reached out for Tate as I carefully placed him in his arms. I was worried considering Tate was a big, solid boy. I still didn’t know just how much strength my father had, and I didn’t want either one of them getting hurt. So, I tried my best not to make it obvious, but I stayed alert in case Tate began to squirm.

  Once my father had Tate in his lap, he stared at him. “Hey, boy. You’re a big man for eight months old.”

  Tate lifted his arms in the air and slammed them down in his lap several times.

  Holding Tate steady with one arm so he could use the other to touch his head, my father leaned forward and kissed Tate’s head.

  “Ma, ma, ma, maaa,” Tate chattered.

  My dad smiled hearing him talk. With his eyes remaining focused on Tate, he declared, “Breaks my heart.”

  “What does?” I asked.

  “The fact that I’ve missed so much of his life,” my father started. “But more than that, I hate that your mother never got to meet him. She would have been in love with this little guy. It was something we always talked about…wanting to grow old together and hoping our daughter would give us lots of grandbabies for us to spoil.”

  My mood shifted. I suddenly found myself feeling very melancholic. Tate would have grown up living a far more enriched life had she still been alive and been in it. I had no dou
bts about that.

  “I take him to see her,” I stated.

  Confusion washed over my father’s features. “What?”

  My eyes shifted to Tate before coming back to my dad. “We go to the cemetery and visit her regularly. It’s so cold out now that I don’t stay too long, but we make extended visits when the weather is nice. We just went and visited her for her birthday.”

  Tears welled up in Dennis Rogers’ eyes. “I miss her so much,” he struggled to get out. “I was driving up until about eight months ago. I haven’t driven since because it’s just not safe anymore. Unfortunately, I haven’t been able to go and see her.”

  Hearing that broke my heart. My mother deserved to be visited by the love of her life. And my father, despite his faults, deserved to have the opportunity to give that to her.

  “I can take you,” I insisted. “Whenever you want, we can go. Tate loves going there, too. I’ll just need to know how to help you with getting in and out of the car.”

  “Delaney, you don’t need to do that,” he advised.

  “I want to. And Mom would like that. She’d want to see all three of us together,” I assured him.

  He nodded slowly and corrected me, “I think she’d like to see the three of us plus the man that makes you smile.”

  Immediately, a grin spread across my face. “You’re right. And I promised her I’d bring him back with me when I visited again. We can go later this week if you’d like.”

  “I’d love that, darling.”

  Tate was content to sit on his grandpa’s lap for roughly another minute before he’d had enough. I reached inside his bag, pulled out his blanket, and opened it up on the living room floor. Taking Tate from my dad’s arms, I set him on the blanket and pulled out a bunch of his toys.

  The two of us, father and daughter, sat there watching the little boy, who was a part of both of us, play with his toys. After some time passed, the majority of which my father spent laughing, he called my name.

  “Yeah?”

  “Are you happy now?” he wondered, a gentleness in his tone I wasn’t sure I ever remembered hearing before in my life.

  “Yes, I am.”

  “He treats you right, doesn’t he?” he confirmed, though I had a feeling he already knew the answer to that question.